China Eastern has recently been increasing connections to several secondary cities in China.
On November 13, the airline began a twice-weekly service between the booming industrial city of Nanjing and Kaohsiung in southern Taiwan. Flight MU2945 leaves Nanjing at 0800 on Tuesday and Friday to land in Taiwan at 1000, with the return leg MU2946 departing at 1100 and arriving at 1300.
Nanjing is one of the primary economic cities in China’s eastern region with dominant industries including electronics, cars, petrochemical, iron and steel.
At the end of last month, China Eastern also began flying twice weekly between Hong Kong and the emerging east coast Chinese city of Lianyungang. Located north of Shanghai, Lianyungang has a large port and is being developed as a hub for sea trade coming from the east and land trade to the west. It is and important player in the Yangtze River Delta Regional Development Plan which the central government set out in 2010.
The city has a large industrial park, Lianyungang Economic and Technological Development Zone, with major industries including textiles, electronics, pharmaceuticals, and machinery. According to the Hong Kong Trade Development Council, several Hong Kong companies have investments in manufacturing there.
China Eastern flight MU7031 leaves Lianyungang at 0930 on Mondays and 1030 on Fridays, landing in Hong Kong at 1200 and 1300 respectively. The return leg departs at 1300 on Mondays and 1400 on Fridays, to arrive back in Hong Kong at 1515 and 1615.
Alongside these new flights, China Eastern has announced plans to boost capacity on its flights from Kunming to Taipei. From December 2, it will begin using a 300-seater A330-300 aircraft – instead of the 134-seater Boeing 737 – to serve the route, according to airlineroute.net.
Kunming has benefited from the central government's policy of stimulating growth in the west of the country and is developing rapidly (see here), attracting increasing investment from around the region.
For more information, visit www.flychinaeastern.com
Nicholas Olczak
